Clean-up on Aisle Two

Clean-up on Aisle Two will creep up on you. Likely owing to the fact that it isn't really like most Doctor Who stories, taking place in what is clearly a Wal-Mart knock-off. A solo story for the Seventh Doctor, I found this entry in the Quality of Leadership to be my overall favourite.

There is some good tension when the fake Wal-Mart is attacked by two thieves, but at its core is a very emotional story centred on the store's night manager, Randall. If this story sounds bizarrely out of place with every other Quality of Leadership story, you are not wrong. It is as seemingly mundane as it comes. But with the Seventh Doctor advising Randall, they are able to navigate the robbery and even save one of the employees.

The whole story hinges on Randall's character and I have to say they really pull of an effective (even if short) journey for him. When we meet Randall, he is a bit of a nerd, obsessed with one video game in particular, and also a very bad manager. He doesn't care about his employees, they don't respect him, and he's just pushing, desperately, to get out of the night shift. With the Doctor, Randall manages to become a leader, one who is able to earn the respect for his employees and form a real connection with them.

As a story in theme with the anthology, it is right on the mark, showing the birth of a leader in the most unlikely of situations. It's also just so wonderfully different than the rest of the anthology, the sole short story in Quality of Leadership taking place on contemporary Earth. I didn't think this one would leave me so energized but with careful pacing by writer James Swallow (who has done a bunch of work for both Who and Star Trek), I found myself really invested in all the characters. Shout-out to Pepper and Yip who are also just super-ordinary, kind of aloof people that become heroes by the end. That's what I like most about this story. The Doctor wanders into a supermarket full of boring people and they all become a little more extraordinary.

I'm glad I'm not the only person to have given Clean-up on Aisle Two a 10/10 on Time Scales. It absolutely deserves that high a rating.